


Mourn No More

by MelonCrafts



Category: Original Work
Genre: Gun Violence, Hunters are bad, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Monsters, Strong Female Characters, Violence, also monsters are good, it kinda is but its chill yall, this sounds much more dark than i thought it would
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-08
Updated: 2019-11-08
Packaged: 2021-01-23 18:29:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21324700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelonCrafts/pseuds/MelonCrafts
Summary: Liam, monster hunter extraordinaire. The secret savior of the United States of America. Top of his class, always took down his prey. Monsters were a vile thing, a plague that scourged the country. They killed, they stole, they slaughtered. They had no showed no mercy, showed no remorse.But what if they weren't what the propaganda made them out to be?





	Mourn No More

Liam, monster hunter extraordinaire. The secret savior of the United States of America. Top of his class, always took down his prey. Monsters were a vile thing, a plague that scourged the country. They killed, they stole, they slaughtered. They had no showed no mercy, showed no remorse. He and others in his organization were hired to protect mankind from the monsters and the terrible things they do. Currently, that means walking through a dark forest to find some sort of monster hideout. He rolls his eyes as murder of crows take off in the distance. Cosy.

After many hours of walking to no avail, Liam begins to cautiously make camp, if one could even call the sparse setup camp. He spreads out a bedroll and pulls out a pack of rations, chewing as he scrubs his face, and grimaces. He’s certainly been out here for a few days, if his stubble has anything to say about it.  
“Stupid monsters.”

It’s then that he notices the horns, and grins. Stupid monsters. Without blinking, his gun is raised and a bullet is fired straight through a horn, and he hears a strangled scream, followed by the sound of footsteps running away. Liam grins. Chases are always fun. Branches whip at his face and arms, blood pumping through his veins, the air filled with the sounds of leaves being crushed and the pounding of feet. He raises his gun and fires once, twice, three times and hears another choked scream, but the feet don’t stop. It isn’t long before they reach the base of a mountain, and Liam sees those ugly horns disappear into a cave. He pauses long enough to pull out a pair of night vision goggles and a clip-on flashlight before stepping towards the cave, but another figure emerges and blocks his entrance.

“We mean you no harm. Leave us in peace.” The figure announces from the shadow of the cave. Liam scoffs.

“Like hell I’d let a monster live. You think I can let the things you’ve done to humans just slide by? The things you and your kind have done to me?”

“We’ve done no such things!” The figure begins, but they freeze when Liam raises his gun. “If you’ll just listen, we haven’t- we aren’t what the propaganda they feed you says we are.” The voice pleads, and his grip tightens as his eyes narrow.

“Why would I listen to monsters? Monsters trick and lie and steal. Monsters take-” Liam takes a shaky breath. “Monsters take who you love. Monsters can not be trusted. Monsters,” he says, finger on the trigger “Deserve to die.”

The shot rings out in the darkness. At the same time, the clouds pull back their curtain, letting the moon shine its spotlight onto the forested stage. Two figures stare at each other, and the world seems to hold its breath. A few shards of rock fall from the bullet size crack in the mountain, rattling as they hit the ground, shattering the silence.

“Liam?” The figure who had been standing at the front of the cave stares at the rugged man before her in horror.  
He inhales sharply, eyes wide. Her dark hair is short, her skin is darker and scarred, she’s all sharp angles and harsh edges, but thats her, but it can’t be, it couldn’t possibly be his- “River?” He breaths, hardly more than a whisper, as if saying it too loudly will make her vanish. She gives the barest of nods, and they inch closer without realizing it, the ache in their hearts made all too apparent once more.

“But you died! Stolen away by monsters, not even a body to mourn over. How- What-” His gun is forgotten as he tries to piece together the woman before him.  
“Liam…” Her voice is gentle, just like he remembers, but the way she looks at him isn’t, and it grates on something deep within him. “Is that what you- Liam I wasn’t-” She lets out an exasperated laugh and stares at the moon for a long moment before facing him again.

“You didn’t need me, Liam.” When all he does is stare, she continues.  
“I was trying to spare you, to be gentle-”  
“Gentle?! Is thinking you were dead ‘gentle’?!” Fear flashes in River’s eyes as she instinctively takes a step back.  
“I know, I’m sorry, but-” She sighs. “It- It’ll be easier if I show you.” She steps forward again, back into the circle of moonlight they share. He watches in horror as two large silver wings spread out from behind her back, and she looks at him again with those dark honeyed eyes, with the expression just to the left of what he cherished. It’s all too familiar, but not familiar at all, and he can’t do anything but stare at the wings that glint in the moonlight. Wings of a monster. Wings that shouldn’t be there.

“Monsters aren’t evil, Liam. I know exactly what they say, and it’s all lies, we just want to live in peace and-”  
“How long?”  
“What?” She stares at him, eyebrows furrowed.  
“How long, River? How long did know you were...” He gestures to her wings. How did he not notice before? How did he not recognize her voice? How could this have happened? How could fate be so cruel? How could she be so cruel?  
“How long did you hide from me?”

She smiles sadly. “I left the day I found out. I knew how you already felt towards us. And I was afraid of what you might do. But I was always hiding from you, even before I knew.” She squares her shoulders. “But not anymore. I’m stronger now. I have people to protect now.”  
“Monsters aren’t people.” It’s an instinct, and he sees how they make her face fall, and that hurts. “River, come back with me. They can find a way to reverse what they’ve done to you, it can all go back to the way it used to be, we can be happy.”

She shakes her head. “Liam, these are my people. I wasn’t infected, I wasn’t cursed, I wasn’t tricked. ‘Monsters’,” she she says, face twisting as she says the term, “don’t necessarily show traits at birth. When I saw feathers, I ran, Liam, I ran and ran until I knew I was safe, until I knew what was going on. And then I learned so, so much. I finally feel like I belong. And I’ll do whatever it takes to protect them. Protect us.” Noticing the rapier in her hand feels like a punch to the gut, and he shifts his grip on his gun.

“If that’s what you’ve chosen…” He stares at the weight in his hand, and then at the love of his life. “I’ve already mourned you once.” 

He raises the gun.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! This was my final for my character development class, and I really liked how it turned out, so I thought I would go ahead and share it!


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